Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 26:27

"And he took a cup, and gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;" — Matthew 26:27 (ASV)

Assuming this is a Passover meal, this “cup” is probably the third, the “cup of blessing.” Jesus again gives thanks (see comment on Lk 22:19–20). The wine was likely fermented grape juice, though it was customary to dilute the wine with a double or triple quantity of water. Matthew records the command: “Drink from it, all of you.” 28 This verse is rich in allusions. “Blood” (GK 135) and “covenant” (GK 1347) are found together in only two OT passages (Exodus 24:8; Zechariah 9:11).

Once again, we can penetrate near the heart of Jesus’ own understanding of his relation to the OT (9:16–17; 11:9–13). Jesus understands the violent and sacrificial death he is about to undergo (i.e., his “blood”) as the ratification of the covenant he is inaugurating with his people, even as Moses in Ex 24:8 ratified the “covenant” of Sinai by the shedding of blood. Jeremiah 31:31–34, with the word “new” before “covenant,” must also have been in Jesus’ mind. The event through which Messiah saves his people from their sins (1:21) is his sacrificial death; and the resulting relation between God and the messianic community is definable in terms of covenant, an agreement with stipulations—promises of blessing and sustenance and threats of cursing, all brought here into legal force by the shedding of blood.

The words “which is poured out for many” could not fail to be understood as a reference to the Passover sacrifice in which so much blood had just been “poured out.” They also connote other sacrificial implications (e.g., Leviticus 1–7; 16), especially significant since at least Jesus’ crucifixion did entail much bloodshed. The phrase “for the forgiveness of sins” alludes to Jer 31:31–34; Jesus’ sacrifice provides the real basis for forgiveness (cf. 1:21).

One more OT allusion is worth emphasizing. Jesus is probably also portraying himself as Isaiah’s Suffering Servant. This is based on three things: (1) “my blood of the covenant” calls to mind that the servant is twice presented as “a covenant for the people” (Isaiah 42:6; Isaiah 49:8)—i.e., he will reestablish the covenant; (2) “poured out” may well reflect Isa 53:12; and (3) “for many” recalls the work of the Servant in Isa 52:13–53:12 .